Cookie Policy

1. Introduction

This Cookie Policy explains how Talvania Global Ltd ("we", "us", "our") uses cookies and similar tracking technologies when you visit our website. It explains what these technologies are, why we use them, what legal rules apply to them, and the choices you have in relation to them. This policy should be read alongside our Privacy Policy, which explains more generally how we use your personal data, and our Terms & Conditions, which govern your use of this website as a whole. We have tried to write this policy in plain, accessible language rather than dense technical or legal jargon, so that you can make an informed choice about the cookies you are comfortable with, rather than simply accepting a policy you have not had the chance to properly understand.

2. What Are Cookies?

Cookies are small text files that are placed on your computer, smartphone or other device when you visit a website. They are widely used to make websites work more efficiently, to remember your preferences, and to provide information to the owners of the site. Cookies typically contain the name of the website they came from, how long they will remain on your device, and a unique value, usually a randomly generated identifier. Similar technologies, such as web beacons, tracking pixels, tags, scripts and local storage, perform comparable functions to cookies and are also covered by this policy where relevant. Some cookies are set by us directly ("first-party cookies"), while others are set by services we use to operate or improve our website ("third-party cookies"), as explained further in Section 9.

3. The Legal Basis for Cookies

In the United Kingdom, the use of cookies and similar technologies is primarily governed by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR), which work alongside the UK GDPR. Under PECR, we generally need your consent before we can place non-essential cookies on your device, except for cookies that are strictly necessary to provide a service you have specifically requested, such as remembering items in an enquiry basket or keeping you securely logged in during a session. This is why, on your first visit, we ask you to choose whether to accept or decline non-essential cookies through our cookie banner, and why you are able to change that choice at any time. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's independent regulator for data protection and electronic communications, publishes guidance on PECR and cookie compliance, which informs how we have designed our cookie banner and the consent mechanisms described in this policy.

4. Types of Cookies We Use

We categorise the cookies used on our website into four broad types: strictly necessary cookies, which are required for our website to function; performance and analytics cookies, which help us understand how visitors use our site; functionality cookies, which remember choices you make to improve your experience; and targeting or advertising cookies, which are used to make advertising more relevant to you. This is a widely used industry categorisation, and you may see similar terminology used on other websites you visit. We explain each category, the specific cookies within it, and how you can control it, in the sections below, so that you can make an informed choice about which categories you are comfortable enabling.

5. Strictly Necessary Cookies

These cookies are essential for our website to operate correctly and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions you take, such as setting your cookie consent preferences, filling in a form, or navigating between secure pages. On our website, this category includes: a session cookie used to maintain your browsing session as you move between pages; a cross-site request forgery ("CSRF") protection token that is generated when you load our contact and newsletter forms and verified when you submit them, to protect you from malicious third-party form submissions; and a cookie (or equivalent local storage entry) that records whether you have accepted or declined non-essential cookies via our cookie banner, so that we do not ask you again on every visit. Because these cookies are essential to the functioning of the site, we do not require your separate consent to use them, although you can still block them via your browser settings, in which case parts of our site — including our contact form and newsletter sign-up — may not work as intended. This category is deliberately kept as small as possible, containing only what is genuinely required to deliver the service you have asked for when using our website.

6. Performance and Analytics Cookies

Where enabled and consented to, these cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so that we can measure and improve the performance of our website. They help us understand which pages are the most and least popular, how visitors move around the site, how long visitors spend on particular pages, and whether visitors encounter error messages. All information collected by these cookies is aggregated and, where possible, anonymised, and is used solely to improve how our website works and to understand which deals and destinations are of most interest to our visitors. If you do not consent to these cookies, we will not be able to attribute your specific visit to our analytics reporting, although anonymised, aggregate traffic statistics may still be generated.

7. Functionality Cookies

These cookies enable our website to remember choices you make, such as destinations or deals you have recently viewed, or your progress through a multi-step form, in order to provide a more personalised experience and to avoid you having to re-enter information every time you visit. They may also be used to remember interface preferences, such as whether you have expanded a particular FAQ accordion or dismissed a notification. The information collected by these cookies is generally anonymised and does not track your browsing activity on other, unrelated websites.

8. Targeting and Advertising Cookies

Where used and consented to, these cookies may be set through our site by ourselves or by advertising partners. They may be used to build a profile of your interests based on the pages and deals you have viewed, and to show you relevant travel offers on our own site or on other websites you subsequently visit. They do not directly store information such as your name, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet-connected device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will still see advertising as you browse the web generally, but it will be less tailored to your interests and to the destinations you have shown interest in on our site.

9. First-Party and Third-Party Cookies

"First-party cookies" are set directly by our website and can only be read by us. "Third-party cookies" are set by a domain other than our own, for example by an analytics provider, an advertising network, a font or icon service, or an embedded social media widget (such as a share button). We work with a limited number of trusted third parties who may set cookies on our website for the purposes described in this policy, including website hosting and performance, font delivery, and, where enabled, analytics. Where third parties set cookies through our site, those third parties are independently responsible for the operation of their own cookies in accordance with their own privacy and cookie policies, which we encourage you to review on their respective websites.

10. Cookies Used on This Website

While the exact cookies set can change as we update our website, the categories of cookie currently in use include: a session identifier cookie (strictly necessary, session-only, first-party) used to maintain a consistent browsing session; a CSRF token cookie (strictly necessary, session-only, first-party) used to protect our contact and newsletter forms from cross-site request forgery; a cookie-consent record (strictly necessary/functionality, persistent, typically stored for up to 12 months, first-party) recording your cookie banner choice; and, where you have consented, analytics cookies (performance, persistent, typically stored for up to 24 months, may be first or third-party) used to understand aggregate visitor behaviour. We do not currently set targeting or advertising cookies by default; if this changes, we will update this policy and our cookie banner accordingly, and will seek your consent before doing so where required.

11. Social Media and Embedded Content

Where our website includes links or embedded content from social media platforms (for example, a link to our social media profiles in the footer), those platforms may set their own cookies if you interact with the embedded content, in accordance with their own cookie and privacy policies. We do not control the cookies set by third-party social media platforms, and we recommend reviewing their respective policies for further information about how they use cookies and process personal data.

12. Email Tracking Technologies

If you have subscribed to our newsletter or otherwise agreed to receive marketing emails from us, those emails may contain small tracking pixels or similar technology that allow us to see whether an email has been opened and whether any links within it have been clicked. This information helps us understand which content is most useful to our subscribers and to improve future communications. You can prevent this tracking by disabling automatic image loading in your email client, and you can always unsubscribe from marketing emails using the unsubscribe link included in every message we send.

13. How Long Do Cookies Last?

"Session cookies" last only for the duration of your visit and are automatically deleted from your device when you close your browser. "Persistent cookies" remain on your device for a set period of time after your visit ends — which varies by cookie, but is commonly between 30 days and 24 months — or until you delete them manually, and are used to remember your preferences or activity for future visits, such as your cookie consent choice.

14. Managing Your Cookie Preferences on This Site

When you first visit our website, you will see a cookie banner allowing you to accept or decline non-essential cookies. You can change your mind at any time by clicking the cookie icon shown in the bottom-left corner of every page, which will reopen your cookie preferences and allow you to update your choice. Declining non-essential cookies will not prevent you from using the core functionality of our website, including browsing deals, viewing packages, submitting an enquiry through our Contact Us page, or signing up to our newsletter.

15. Managing Cookies via Your Browser

In addition to the controls we provide directly on our website, most web browsers allow you to control cookies through their own settings. In Google Chrome, this is typically found under Settings > Privacy and Security > Cookies and other site data. In Mozilla Firefox, under Settings > Privacy & Security > Cookies and Site Data. In Apple Safari, under Preferences > Privacy. In Microsoft Edge, under Settings > Cookies and site permissions. Each browser is different and menu locations change over time with software updates, so please check the "Help" menu of your specific browser or device for the most current instructions on how to view, manage, block or delete cookies. Please note that if you disable cookies altogether at the browser level, some parts of our website, including our contact and newsletter forms, may not function correctly.

16. Mobile Devices

If you access our website from a mobile device, your device's operating system and mobile browser may offer similar cookie and tracking controls to those available on desktop browsers, usually found within the device or browser app's privacy or settings menu. Some mobile operating systems also provide device-wide controls over app and website tracking, which may interact with the cookies described in this policy.

17. What Happens If You Disable Cookies?

If you choose to disable or decline cookies, you can still browse our website and view our deals and travel content. However, some features that rely on cookies to function, such as remembering that you have already dismissed our cookie banner (meaning it may reappear on future visits), certain form protections, and any personalisation features, will not work as intended, and you may be asked to re-enter information more often than would otherwise be the case.

18. Do Not Track Signals

Some browsers offer a "Do Not Track" (DNT) setting that sends a signal to websites requesting that they not track your browsing activity. There is currently no industry-wide, legally binding standard for how websites should respond to DNT signals. We currently do not respond differently to DNT browser signals, but we do provide the cookie consent controls described in this policy, which allow you to manage your preferences directly and which we consider to be a more granular and transparent mechanism than a single browser-wide signal.

19. Similar Technologies

In addition to cookies, we may use similar technologies such as web beacons (small transparent graphic images embedded in web pages or emails), local storage and session storage (data stored directly in your browser rather than as a traditional cookie file), and tags or scripts that load third-party functionality, for purposes similar to those described above, including measuring the effectiveness of email campaigns, remembering interface preferences, and supporting essential site functionality such as our cookie consent banner.

20. How We Record Your Consent

When you make a choice through our cookie banner, we record that choice (either as a cookie or an equivalent local storage entry) so that we can honour your preference on future visits and demonstrate, if required, that valid consent was obtained in accordance with our obligations under PECR and UK GDPR. This consent record typically includes the date of your decision and which option you selected. You can review or change your choice at any time using the cookie icon described in Section 14.

21. Reviewing and Auditing Our Cookies

We periodically review the cookies and similar technologies used on our website to confirm they remain accurate, necessary, and correctly categorised in accordance with this policy. Where we introduce a new tool or service that sets cookies, we assess whether it falls within an existing category described in this policy or whether it requires us to update this policy and, where applicable, our cookie banner to seek fresh consent before the new cookie is set.

22. Cookies and Children

Our website is intended for use by adults arranging travel, and we do not knowingly direct our use of cookies or similar tracking technologies at children. If you are a parent or guardian and believe a child has provided us with information via our website, please contact us using the details in Section 24 so that we can address this appropriately, consistent with the approach described in our Privacy Policy.

23. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the cookies and similar technologies we use, changes to the third parties we work with, developments in cookie-related law and regulation (including any future reform of PECR), or for other operational reasons. Where we make material changes, we may also update our cookie banner so that you can provide fresh consent if required. We encourage you to review this page periodically to stay informed. The date at the top of this page indicates when it was last revised.

24. Why We Ask for Consent Rather Than Assuming It

Some websites operate on the basis of "implied consent", treating your continued use of the site as agreement to non-essential cookies. We have chosen instead to operate an explicit "opt-in" cookie banner, meaning non-essential cookies (such as performance and analytics cookies) are not set until you have actively chosen to accept them. We believe this gives you clearer, more meaningful control over your data than a model based on implied consent, and it reflects current regulatory best practice under PECR and UK GDPR guidance issued by the Information Commissioner's Office.

25. Relationship With Our Other Policies

This Cookie Policy should be read together with our Privacy Policy, which explains the wider legal bases, retention periods and your rights in relation to any personal data collected via cookies, and our Terms & Conditions, which govern your use of our website more generally. Where there is any conflict between this Cookie Policy and our Privacy Policy specifically in relation to cookies, this Cookie Policy takes precedence as the more specific document.

26. A Summary of How Cookies Support Our Website

To bring the above together: strictly necessary cookies keep our website secure and functioning, including protecting our contact and newsletter forms and remembering your cookie choice; performance and analytics cookies, used only with your consent, help us understand which deals and destinations visitors find most useful; functionality cookies make your browsing experience smoother by remembering your recent activity on our site; and, where used, targeting cookies help ensure any advertising you see elsewhere is more relevant to your interests. None of these cookies are used to make automated decisions about you, and you remain in control of the non-essential categories at all times through the cookie banner and the persistent cookie icon described in Section 14. If, having read this policy, you would prefer to browse with only strictly necessary cookies enabled, you can do so at any time by declining non-essential cookies through either of these controls.

27. More Information About Cookies

If you would like to learn more about cookies generally, how they work, and how to manage them across different browsers and devices, independent resources such as www.aboutcookies.org and www.allaboutcookies.org provide further guidance that applies broadly across most modern browsers and operating systems, in addition to the browser-specific guidance in Section 15 and the wider context in our Privacy Policy.

28. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Cookie Policy or how we use cookies on our website, please contact us on (0203) 983-6853, via WhatsApp, or through our Contact Us page. Our registered office address is Office 8168, 321-323 High Road, Chadwell Heath, Essex, United Kingdom, RM6 6AX. We are happy to talk you through any part of this policy in plain language over the phone.